The Best Guide for the Taunton Area

Tips on filling your car

I don't know what you guys are paying for petrol..... but here in Durban we are also paying high prices, up to R 8.50 per litre.   My line of work is in petroleum and has been for about 31 years now.   So here are some tricks to get more of your money's worth for every litre.

Here at Marian Hill Pipeline where I work in Durban, we deliver about 4 million litres in a 24 hour period thru the pipeline.   One day is diesel; the next day is jet fuel, and petrol, LPR and Unleaded.   We have 34 storage tanks here with a total capacity of 16,800,000 litres.

Only buy or fill up your car in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold.

Remember that all Service Stations have their storage tanks buried beneath the ground.   The colder the ground the more dense the fuel.   When it gets warmer petrol expands, so buying in the afternoon or evening .......... your litre is not exactly a litre.   In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the petrol, diesel, jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products play an important role.   A one degree rise in temperature is a big deal in this business but the Service Stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.

When you are filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode.

If you look you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages; low, middle and high.   In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimising the vapours that are created while you are pumping.   All hoses at the pump have a vapour return.   If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes into your tank becomes vapour.   Those vapours are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you're getting less worth for your money.

One of the most important tips is to fill up when your tank is HALF FULL .

The reason for this is, the more fuel you have in you tank, the less air occupying its empty space.   Petrol evaporates faster than you can imagine.   Petroleum storage tanks have an internal floating roof.  This roof serves as zero clearance between petrol and the atmosphere, so it minimises the evaporation.   Unlike Service Stations, here where I work, every truck that we load is temperature compensated so that every litre is actually the exact amount.

Another reminder.  

If there is a fuel truck pumping into storage tanks when you stop to buy, DO NOT FILL UP.   Most likely the petrol/diesel is being stirred up as the fuel is being delivered and you might pick up some dirt that normally settles on the bottom.

Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.   Remember to always fill your car when the tank shows 'half'.   Always fill up in the early morning.   Always fill up in slow mode.

Andrew Dickinson
Associate Director

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Joined: 14 May 2007
Posts: 4

At 11:08 on 16th July 2008, kerris m commented:

Really interesting and with the way things are at the moment every penny counts!
Thanks.

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Joined: 11 Jun 2008
Posts: 18

At 12:18 on 16th July 2008, Aislinn R commented:

Thanks - this is very good, I will now fill up when half full and though ground temperature normally is not an issue in this climate will bear this in mind in the summer months - anything that keeps me running longer is worth a try

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Posts: 1

At 14:40 on 17th July 2008, John S commented:

one problem with the 'fill when half full' tip though is that you're always carrying all that extra weight in the car - and that seriously impacts on the fuel economy. I've started doing the opposite and only ever half fill the tank. I'm now getting over 80 mpg out of my Citreon C3.
Temperatre is an issue and it's a good to fill up when it's cool rather than in the afternoon of a very hot day.
Another tip - remove roofbars/boxes etc. This time of year people tend to leave them fastened to the roof and they cause quite a bit of drag. Can impair your fuel economy by 10% !!

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